Who had been there for him after Millie Rose died?
Certainly not his ex-wife!
She looked at Geoff. “I can’t believe you named her after me too.” She frowned. “Unless, of course?—”
“You’re my favorite member of our family. Besides, we don’t know another Eleanor,” Geoff assured her teasingly.
Tears blurred Ellie’s vision. “Thank you.”
“Would one of you like to hold your future goddaughter?” Geoff encouraged softly when Knox and Karen finally stood apart.
Ellie watched Knox as he drew in a long and shaky breath. His eyes were red-rimmed, his dark stubble very visible against the pallor of his cheeks.
As if sensing his nervousness, the baby in Geoff’s arms turned her head as if she was staring straight at him, silently asking, Why are you hesitating? Can’t you see how beautiful I am?
Because Nora Millie Rose was absolutely stunning.
Being premature, the babies weren’t in the least wrinkled, their skin smooth and unblemished. Nora’s eyes were that generic blue of most newborns, but there was already a brown ring around the pale blue iris, perhaps an indication they were eventually going to be dark brown like those of her father.
“Goddaughter?” Knox repeated in a strangulated voice.
“And godson, if the two of you agree, yes,” Geoff encouraged, coming to stand next to his wife. “As we’re both only children, you two are the closest things to an aunt and uncle the babies will ever have.”
“I would be honored,” Ellie accepted, holding her breath as she waited for Knox’s response.
Ellie truly considered it an honor to be invited to be an official part of the twins’ lives, and to know that Nora was named for her. Just as she was sure Knox, once he had time to gather his thoughts, would be pleased that Aaran Knox had his name and Nora’s middle name was Millie Rose.
But right now, in the full immediacy of it, what had already been a traumatic situation for Knox had now become even more so.
Ellie had no idea how he was going to react.
Knox stared at baby Eleanor Millie Rose. In truth, he couldn’t look away. She was so tiny, the smallest baby he had ever seen: Millie Rose had weighed eight pounds when she was born.
Nora looked far too small and fragile for him to accept Geoff’s invitation to hold her. One of his hands was almost as long as her whole tiny body!
Which, they all knew, wasn’t the reason he was hesitating.
He hadn’t held a baby since Millie Rose, and since her death, he had deliberately avoided putting himself in the position of being near babies if he could avoid it.
I let Angel throw herself into my arms whenever the two of us meet, and she’s the same age as Millie Rose was when she died.
Yes, she was, and because of the unusual circumstances of their first meeting, he’d never had a problem with hugging Angel and spending time with her, making sure she knew she would always be safe.
But this was different. Holding baby Eleanor Millie Rose was different.
“Knox?” Karen prompted gently.
Nora was just a baby, he cajoled inwardly. An innocent baby who was as beautiful as her namesake.
Knox swallowed, his expression resolute as he bent one of his arms, ready to cradle the baby. “Come to your Uncle Knox, Nora Millie Rose,” he invited softly.
The first thing Knox thought after Geoff had placed the baby in his arms was how light she felt, no more than a medium bag of sugar from the supermarket. The second thing was how beautiful she was. Miniature perfection.
He felt a tightness in his chest when he realized Nora Millie Rose was still staring up at him with those trusting blue eyes. As if she was reassuring him, I’m here for you to love now.
It was ridiculous to think that way when he knew that Nora Millie Rose—God, that was going to take some getting used to—couldn’t even focus properly at such a young age, let alone convey silent messages of comfort to him with her eyes.
And yet, as he continued to hold her, to gaze into those trusting blue eyes, Knox felt a calm settle over him, the perpetual ache he had suffered in his chest for the last ten years no longer feeling quite so heavy.
